Ledford outscored West Davidson 19-1 in the first quarter and never let the Dragons within arm’s reach in a 57-37 Central Carolina Conference win. With Ledford moving down to 2-A and joining the 10-team CCC, league play began very early. For the Panthers, that meant opening the season with a conference test.

But Ashley Anthony and Lyrik Thorne knocked down 3s in the first minute, and the Panthers stretched their lead to 19-0 late in the first quarter. That kind of start certainly helped calm Ledford’s jitters. “We started off pretty well,” Ledford coach Chris Doby said. “Defensively, that kind of sparked us to get going. We were fortunate, and they were unfortunate: they couldn’t buy a basket.

“We’ve all seen those nights. They’re terrible, and I hate when that happens to anybody. So we were able to build a cushion and keep them at bay.”

During the big early run, Emma O’Toole found Anthony and McCall Denny for buckets, then Anthony buried another corner 3 to make it 14-0. By the time Brianna Church corralled a rebound and stuck it back in, the lead was 19-0 and the only drama remaining was the final score.

Despite the big early hole, West managed to play even with the Panthers over the final three quarters. Haley Lowe scored all 10 of her points in the second half, and Olivia Sharpe finished with nine points.

That resiliency made West coach Jamie Payne proud. “I told my girls, regardless of if they thought Ledford was more athletic as a team, they had to play with heart and passion,” Payne said. “I think that sparked them a little bit, but we didn’t come back hard enough.